--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I had little or no opportunity when I…" description: "\"I had little or no opportunity when I started out in life.\" — Madam C. J. Walker" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7f8/madam-c-j-walker-18546_life_i-had-little-or-no-opportunity-when-i-st_990925.png" --- # I had little or no opportunity when I started out in life. ![“I had little or no opportunity when I started out in life.” quote by Madam C. J. Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7f8/madam-c-j-walker-18546_life_i-had-little-or-no-opportunity-when-i-st_990925.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7f8/madam-c-j-walker-18546_life_i-had-little-or-no-opportunity-when-i-st_990925.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7f8/madam-c-j-walker-18546_life_i-had-little-or-no-opportunity-when-i-st_990925.png) > “I had little or no opportunity when I started out in life.” [Madam C. J. Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madam-c-j-walker/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. She reflects on early lack of opportunities, highlighting her rise from scarcity to success. **In simple terms:** Early lack of chance, later success. Key Takeaway Recognize growth from humble beginnings. Themes perseverance entrepreneurship empowerment Mood determined hopeful Type historical motivational When to use this quote - business startup - community mentorship - personal branding Key Concepts social mobility self‑determination Questions to Reflect On - How did you overcome early scarcity? - What opportunities can you create for others? A Different Perspective Opportunities can be limited by systemic barriers. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Little](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/little/) [Little Opportunity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/little-opportunity-2028343/) [Opportunity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/opportunity/) [Opportunity Started](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/opportunity-started-2028344/) [Out](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/out/) [Started](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/started/) [Started Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/started-life-457996/) ## Related quotes > [All the support and opportunity started and then Le Mans became the pipe dream, the thing to aim for, the end of the rainbow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-hoy/all-the-support-and-opportunity-started-and-then-le-mans-became-the/) [Chris Hoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-hoy/) > [I never said I want to be the football guy. But when that opportunity started to become real, I said, 'Okay, let's see where…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/booger-mcfarland/i-never-said-i-want-to-be-the-football-guy-but-when-that-opportunity/) [Booger McFarland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/booger-mcfarland/) > [I thought I had a great opportunity when I started doing my comic book in 1972. I thought there was so much territory to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harvey-pekar/i-thought-i-had-a-great-opportunity-when-i-started-doing-my-comic/) [Harvey Pekar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harvey-pekar/) > [I started out life as a writer, and writers write in part because they don't want to talk.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-steinem/i-started-out-life-as-a-writer-and-writers-write-in-part-because-they/) [Gloria Steinem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-steinem/) > [Life is just a little opportunity for you during a few years to say to God: 'I love you, too.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-nouwen/life-is-just-a-little-opportunity-for-you-during-a-few-years-to-say/) [Henri Nouwen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-nouwen/) > [Those who rule the world get so little opportunity to run about and laugh and play in it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-fry/those-who-rule-the-world-get-so-little-opportunity-to-run-about-and/) [Stephen Fry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-fry/) > [Life is just a little opportunity for you during a few years to say, "I love you, too."](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-nouwen/life-is-just-a-little-opportunity-for-you-during-a-few-years-to-say-i/) [Henri Nouwen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-nouwen/) > [One of the things that made me long to be back in prison was that I had so little opportunity for reading, thinking and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nelson-mandela/one-of-the-things-that-made-me-long-to-be-back-in-prison-was-that-i/) [Nelson Mandela](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nelson-mandela/) > [There was very little opportunity to carry on in Formula 1. My goal was to get on to the starting grid and that didn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susie-wolff/there-was-very-little-opportunity-to-carry-on-in-formula-1-my-goal/) [Susie Wolff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susie-wolff/) > [I started out in life with two great advantages: No money and good parents.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-thatcher/i-started-out-in-life-with-two-great-advantages-no-money-and-good/) [Margaret Thatcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-thatcher/) > [God bless my mother - she's long gone now, but she'd work all day and go to school at night. She started out in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-banks/god-bless-my-mother-she-s-long-gone-now-but-she-d-work-all-day-and-go/) [Jonathan Banks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-banks/) > [I think I have started to take life as it comes and quite uninhibitedly, without being repressed by the expectations of the society.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vaani-kapoor/i-think-i-have-started-to-take-life-as-it-comes-and-quite/) [Vaani Kapoor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vaani-kapoor/) > [I started my life with Rs 5,000.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rakesh-jhunjhunwala/i-started-my-life-with-rs-5-000/) [Rakesh Jhunjhunwala](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rakesh-jhunjhunwala/) > [This is where I started life. This is where I went to uni. This is where the people I know are. This is my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mo-farah/this-is-where-i-started-life-this-is-where-i-went-to-uni-this-is/) [Mo Farah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mo-farah/) > [When I started out in life I wanted to teach.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-spinetti/when-i-started-out-in-life-i-wanted-to-teach/) [Victor Spinetti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-spinetti/) ## More by Madam C. J. Walker > [In a dream, a big black man appeared to me and told me what to mix up for my hair. I made up my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madam-c-j-walker/in-a-dream-a-big-black-man-appeared-to-me-and-told-me-what-to-mix-up/) [Madam C. J. Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madam-c-j-walker/) > [I am not merely satisfied in making money for myself, for I am endeavoring to provide employment for hundreds of women of my race.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madam-c-j-walker/i-am-not-merely-satisfied-in-making-money-for-myself-for-i-am/) [Madam C. J. Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madam-c-j-walker/) > [The girls and women of our race must not be afraid to take hold of business endeavor and, by patient industry, close economy, determined…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madam-c-j-walker/the-girls-and-women-of-our-race-must-not-be-afraid-to-take-hold-of/) [Madam C. J. Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madam-c-j-walker/) > [I am a woman who came from the cotton fields of the South. From there I was promoted to the washtub. From there I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madam-c-j-walker/i-am-a-woman-who-came-from-the-cotton-fields-of-the-south-from-there/) [Madam C. J. Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madam-c-j-walker/) > [IT'S PRETTY HARD for the Lord TO GUIDE YOU IF YOU HAVEN'T MADE UP YOUR MIND WHICH WAY TO GO.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madam-c-j-walker/it-s-pretty-hard-for-the-lord-to-guide-you-if-you-haven-t-made-up/) [Madam C. J. Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madam-c-j-walker/) > [There is no royal flower strewn path to success. And if there is, I have not found it, for whatever success I have attained…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madam-c-j-walker/there-is-no-royal-flower-strewn-path-to-success-and-if-there-is-i/) [Madam C. J. Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madam-c-j-walker/) > [One night I had a dream, and in that dream a big black man appeared to me and told me what to mix up…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madam-c-j-walker/one-night-i-had-a-dream-and-in-that-dream-a-big-black-man-appeared-to/) [Madam C. J. Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madam-c-j-walker/) > [You might say that I was the first and caused others to awaken to the sense of their duty in helping deserving causes for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madam-c-j-walker/you-might-say-that-i-was-the-first-and-caused-others-to-awaken-to-the/) [Madam C. J. Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madam-c-j-walker/) > [I have made it possible for many colored women to abandon the washtub for a more pleasant and profitable occupation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madam-c-j-walker/i-have-made-it-possible-for-many-colored-women-to-abandon-the-washtub/) [Madam C. J. Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madam-c-j-walker/) > [I have always held myself out as a hair culturist. I grow hair.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madam-c-j-walker/i-have-always-held-myself-out-as-a-hair-culturist-i-grow-hair/) [Madam C. J. Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madam-c-j-walker/) > [As I bent over the washboard and looked at my arms buried in soapsuds, I said to myself, 'What are you going to do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madam-c-j-walker/as-i-bent-over-the-washboard-and-looked-at-my-arms-buried-in-soapsuds/) [Madam C. J. Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madam-c-j-walker/) > [Don't sit down and wait for the opportunities to come. Get up and make them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madam-c-j-walker/don-t-sit-down-and-wait-for-the-opportunities-to-come-get-up-and-make/) [Madam C. J. Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madam-c-j-walker/) > [I have built my own factory on my own ground, 38 by 208 feet. I employ in that factory seven people, including a bookkeeper,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madam-c-j-walker/i-have-built-my-own-factory-on-my-own-ground-38-by-208-feet-i-employ/) [Madam C. J. Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madam-c-j-walker/) > [I want the great masses of my people to take a greater pride in their personal appearance and to give their hair proper attention.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madam-c-j-walker/i-want-the-great-masses-of-my-people-to-take-a-greater-pride-in-their/) [Madam C. J. Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madam-c-j-walker/) > [Perseverance is my motto!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madam-c-j-walker/perseverance-is-my-motto/) [Madam C. J. Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madam-c-j-walker/) [Explore all 34 Madam C. J. Walker quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madam-c-j-walker/) ## More Life quotes > [Of all the people who have affected my life and influenced the choices I've made, none has been more important than my father. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/teddy-atlas/of-all-the-people-who-have-affected-my-life-and-influenced-the/) [Teddy Atlas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/teddy-atlas/) > [What sets worlds in motion is the interplay of differences, their attractions and repulsions. Life is plurality, death is uniformity. By suppressing differences and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octavio-paz/what-sets-worlds-in-motion-is-the-interplay-of-differences-their/) [Octavio Paz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octavio-paz/) > [Life is full of change. That's how we learn and grow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/life-is-full-of-change-that-s-how-we-learn-and-grow/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Life works most perfectly when a reciprocal love relationship is in place between man and God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beth-moore/life-works-most-perfectly-when-a-reciprocal-love-relationship-is-in/) [Beth Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/beth-moore/) > [I value the experiences that come with life too much to sit by and not put my full effort into them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-miller/i-value-the-experiences-that-come-with-life-too-much-to-sit-by-and/) [Jim Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-miller/) > [Entertainment is a sacred pursuit when done well. When done well, it raises the quality of human life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-chabon/entertainment-is-a-sacred-pursuit-when-done-well-when-done-well-it/) [Michael Chabon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-chabon/) > [“There's more to life than you can see. Your sight is limited.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tammy-kling/there-s-more-to-life-than-you-can-see-your-sight-is-limited/) [Tammy Kling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tammy-kling/) > [“I've spent much of my life calling my intuition "something wrong with me.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deanna-l-lawlis/i-ve-spent-much-of-my-life-calling-my-intuition-something-wrong-with/) [Deanna L. Lawlis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deanna-l-lawlis/) > [When you do things they're absolutely right at that time for you and it can always teach you something about yourself. You can take…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kym-marsh/when-you-do-things-they-re-absolutely-right-at-that-time-for-you-and/) [Kym Marsh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kym-marsh/) > [The only people who think the Internet is a calamity are people whose lives have been hurt by it; the only people who insist…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-klosterman/the-only-people-who-think-the-internet-is-a-calamity-are-people-whose/) [Chuck Klosterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-klosterman/) > [The one thing that I keep learning over and over again is that I don't know nothing. I mean, that's my life lesson.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dwayne-johnson/the-one-thing-that-i-keep-learning-over-and-over-again-is-that-i-don/) [Dwayne Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dwayne-johnson/) > [“THIS tale of my sore-troubled life I write,    To thank the God of nature, who conveyed    My soul to me, and with such care…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/this-tale-of-my-sore-troubled-life-i-write-to-thank-the-god-of-nature/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“The future is only an indifferent void no one cares about, but the past is filled with life, and its countenance is irritating, repellent,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milan-kundera/the-future-is-only-an-indifferent-void-no-one-cares-about-but-the/) [Milan Kundera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milan-kundera/) > [Two things revolutionised life: moving to the countryside and falling in love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-love/two-things-revolutionised-life-moving-to-the-countryside-and-falling/) [Nick Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-love/) > [But just remember, life without me would be even more unbearable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-rice/but-just-remember-life-without-me-would-be-even-more-unbearable/) [Anne Rice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-rice/) [Browse all 265,290 Life quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I had little or no opportunity when I started out in life.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Madam C. 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